If you have a child with attention problems, yoga has been shown to safely improve concentration while developing awareness for calming emotionality without the negative side effects associated with pharmaceuticals. Improving confidence, self-esteem and promoting physical health with yoga can give your child additional benefits for coping with stress and difficult emotions.
Benefits
While the active component of yoga will promote flexibility and increased strength, Sharon Gannon and David Life, the creators of the world-famous practice of Jivumukti yoga, claim that the holistic component of yoga has been shown to alleviate stress and encourage increased focus, calm and relaxation. When children are able to better direct their impulses, their self-esteem and confidence increases to enhance awareness and promote positive behavior while reducing impulsive choices.
Considerations
Directing a child through yoga poses and guided meditation is best done with a playful spirit to ensure body and mind awareness without boredom. Because mindfulness is something that even adults can have trouble mastering, it is best to provide guided visualizations that will capture your child's attention. Offering imaginative scenarios of stillness can add beneficial motivation for children who struggle with attention issues while keeping cues short and clear will help as your child learns to work within the mindset of stillness.
Function
Teaching children the fundamentals of yogic breath encourages a skill that can be utilized in any situation without being noticed by peers. Yogic breath increases oxygen flow to the brain and gives children a moment to calm thoughts and impulses so that better choices can be made, reducing impulsive actions and increasing attention. Teach your child to use yogic breath whenever she is in a stressful or boring situation where she might resort to inattention. The pattern of yogic breath is to breath slowly in through the nose, hold for a second, then release through the nose, again pausing for a second after all the air has been released. This four square yogic breathing has been used for centuries to decrease adrenaline caused by stress and functions as a catalyst for improved decisions.
Potential
School rooms tend to be full of children struggling with behavioral inattention problems. With reduced funding, schools all over the country have been cutting into activities that used to help children reduce stress. Art, sports, recess and music have all been reduced while class sizes have been increased. Overwhelmed teachers may welcome information about how to implement yoga stretching and breathing skills to increase positive school performance and more cooperative behavior. With a little research, Kat Randall of "Yoga for Kids" believes volunteering to lead a short classroom yoga series in the morning or after lunch may help your child and his classmates adopt healthier ways to focus while improving their physical and mental health.
Implementation
Follow the leader is a great way to encourage the creativity of yoga with children. Take turns leading while doing favorite yoga poses. Hold each pose for one minute in stillness. Offering imaginative stories can be a great way to incorporate poses as you journey forward in your game. Poses like bear, downward dog, cat/cow, tree, lion, cobra and mountain are perfect for increasing interest in the story. Another fun way to promote yoga know-how with children is a game of "Yogi Simon Says." Give cues like "Yogi Simon says...do downward dog!"
References
- "Yoga for Youngsters"; Kat Randall; 2009
- "Teach Your Own: The John Holt Book of Homeschooling"; John Holt; 2003
- "Jivumukti yoga": David Life & Sharron Gannon; 2008
- "Magical Child"; Joseph Chilton Pearce; 1977
- "Natural Mental Health"; Carla Wills-Brandon Ph.D; 2005
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